After finishing the gift-giving, Charlie could finally look at the presents he had received.
A large pile of gift boxes, of various shapes and sizes, was stacked by his bedside, looking quite plentiful.
Charlie nodded, very pleased with his popularity.
He casually picked up the first gift; the tag bore Professor Flitwick's name.
He tore open the wrapping, and inside was a copy of "Advanced Spell Explanations" and a note.
"If you want to learn Apparition, then work harder."
Next was Professor McGonagall's gift, the latest issue of "transfiguration today," which was equivalent to the newest academic papers in the field of Transfiguration.
These two books were clearly not cheap and couldn't be bought in ordinary bookstores; they represented cutting-edge knowledge in their respective fields.
The two Professors' expectations for Charlie were evident, but unfortunately, Charlie couldn't use either of these books.
Compared to self-study, the lottery was clearly faster and more direct.
Moreover, he couldn't earn tyrant points while studying, and without tyrant points, he couldn't draw in the lottery. If he couldn't draw, his Spell progress would be slow, and slow Spell progress was equivalent to not studying.
Therefore, studying = not studying.
It was all the system's fault; Charlie really wanted to thoroughly read those two books.
...
Professor Sprout sent a beautifully packaged box of biscuits.
Charlie opened and tasted them; they were quite good.
Then he searched for a long time but couldn't find Professor Snape's gift.
"That old bat, no gesture at all?"
"My 13-in-1 shampoo was truly wasted on him."
"Outrageous. Next time you're in detention, I'll mix up your ingredients."
Charlie grumbled and continued to unwrap gifts.
Harry and Ron jointly sent a large bag of chocolate frogs.
The Weasley Twins sent a box of prank candies.
Ernie sent a set of Hufflepuff badges and a tie clip, the very formal kind.
Justin sent an entire book of Victoria's Secrets.
Charlie looked outside and breathed a sigh of relief; thankfully, Grandma White hadn't come.
Charlie hid the book under his pillow. It was scandalous; he definitely needed to thoroughly critique it tonight.
The last gift was from Hermione.
The box wasn't big, but it was exquisite.
He opened it to find a silver alarm clock inside.
"What does this mean?" Charlie raised an eyebrow.
"Saying I'm late for class."
"When have I ever been late?"
"I always arrive just in time, alright!"
Although he complained verbally, Charlie felt very warm inside.
These gifts might not necessarily be useful to Charlie, but they represented his friends' care for him, and that he had truly integrated into Hogwarts and into this world.
After unwrapping all the gifts, Charlie lay contentedly on his bed.
"It's almost time for the lottery."
He looked at the system panel; his tyrant points had already accumulated to 1200.
"System, draw 120 times for me!"
The golden roulette wheel spun in his mind, and Charlie watched nervously.
Congratulations to Your Majesty for obtaining: Levitation Charm proficiency +10
Congratulations to Your Majesty for obtaining: Shield Charm proficiency +15
Congratulations to Your Majesty for obtaining: Free Talent Point
...Several consecutive draws yielded only proficiency for Spells he had already obtained, which left Charlie a bit disappointed.
Only the Free Talent Point was relatively good, but currently, Charlie's Transfiguration and Charms talents were both at max level 10 points.
He would save this Free Talent Point for later, to use when a certain subject needed it.
"Diffindo, Apparition, Diffindo..."
He frantically chanted Professor Flitwick's small combo in his mind.
The number of lottery draws gradually dwindled, but Charlie still hadn't drawn the Spell he wanted, not even a new Spell.
Just when Charlie was about to give up.
Congratulations to Your Majesty for obtaining: Densaugeo proficiency +25
Congratulations to Your Majesty for obtaining: Sectumsempra
Charlie instantly sat up.
"Sectumsempra? What kind of Spell is this?"
Sectumsempra is a Dark Arts Spell invented by Professor Snape, with power far exceeding Diffindo.
Wounds inflicted by it cannot heal unless there is a corresponding counter-Spell.
"Snape can invent Spells too?"
"The wounds can't even heal; how insidious, just like Snape."
Charlie excitedly jumped out of bed.
"I have to try the effect!"
He walked out of the room and went to the Orphanage's backyard.
The backyard was quiet, with only faint chirping of insects in the distance.
Charlie found a football-sized stone and placed it in the center of the yard.
"Sectumsempra!"
He whispered the Spell and waved his wand lightly.
An invisible blade flew out, instantly slicing through the stone.
Crack!
The stone neatly split into two halves, with a surface as smooth as a mirror.
Charlie's eyes lit up.
"If I had known this move when fighting Goblins, I would have nailed them with every sneak attack."
"Finally, I've drawn a powerful offensive Spell."
"But this is Dark Arts. Quirrell said Dark Arts would affect one's sanity, right?"
Although Quirrell seemed unreliable, he was still the Professor of Defense Against the Dark Arts.
He shouldn't be wrong about such basic knowledge.
Your Majesty, rest assured, magic produced by the system does not have such side effects and will absolutely not erode Your Majesty's sanity.
This reassured Charlie completely, and he opened the system panel to check the results of his lottery draws.
Your Majesty: Charlie White
Age: 11
magic Talent Rating: (Max Level 10)
Transfiguration: 10
Charms: 10
Potions: 6
Defense Against the Dark Arts: 7
Herbology: 4
Astronomy: 4
History of Magic: 5
tyrant points: 0
Free Talent Points: 1
magic Mastered: Transfiguration (Level 3: 0/1000), Incendio (Level 3: 800/1000), Stupefy (Level 3: 760/1000), Expelliarmus (Level 3: 0/1000), Protego (Level 3: 380/1000)...
Most of his Spell levels had reached Level 3, which was the proficiency for silent casting.
Even Transfiguration had reached Level 3. Level 3 Transfiguration not only allowed silent casting but also enabled turning objects into living creatures.
To Charlie, this was the most insidious aspect of Wizards.
Imagine, when you want to assassinate a target, you only need to transform a fly to poison his food, and you can kill without a trace.
It was said that Lord Voldemort once wanted to purge Muggles and killed many people with Dark Arts.
To Charlie, this was utterly foolish.
If it were him, he would directly transform tens of thousands of mosquitoes, carrying deadly viruses, and London would fall within a week.
That's why being a Wizard requires brains; without a brain, even being a Dark Lord is inferior.
Time at home always passed quickly. It felt like the holiday was just yesterday, but today was already the start of the school term.
Charlie took his train ticket, bid farewell to Grandma White, and went to King's Cross Station.
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